Death, taxes, and Leeds United imploding in the most spectacular, improbable fashion.

What began as one of those odd, off-piste stories that seemed destined to become an obscure answer in a pub quiz had morphed into the latest chapter in heartbreak specialists Leeds United’s endless struggle to return to the Premier League.

At least, so it appeared when the club’s idiosyncratic manager Marcelo Bielsa called an unexpected press conference on Wednesday in order to address what has been dubbed “Spygate” and, it was assumed by many, resign. Days earlier, a Leeds club employee had been spotted outside Derby County’s training ground, apparently tasked with a clandestine fact-finding mission. Bielsa took responsibility, saying he had ordered the trip and explaining such practice had been a routine part of his pre-match preparation since his time in charge of Argentina over a decade ago.